Wednesday, February 2, 2011

This year is great to start your own business


There cannot be no better time to start your business than this year at least. As by this time probably many of you may have come out of the evils of the debt cycle which had begun with the onset of recession. All of you who have been consulting the best debt management programs till now, can actually think of giving a boost to your finances particularly those who have been victims of a job lay off. Initially when you try to conjure images of a business ownership, you may visualize the problems and hassles of funding, securing the business and paying for the materials which may seem as the major obstacles in the way of your dreams, but you are certainly wrong, as being a business owner will actually get you rid of the concerns that you may experience before asking for a raise from your boss to put it simply. So the important thing is the need to remain focused on your goal before being pessimistic about the risks.
For the first timers however, starting with your own business can be exciting because you may finally give up your fears of being laid off and simultaneously you can think of your business as a form of career insurance and you will surely have all the authority to work for yourself rather than for somebody else. According to a study, the average time for which a person can serve an organization is four years, after which they are handed pink slips. Moreover there are many organizations which do not comply with the benefits which they had promised in the beginning and do not treat their employees with sufficient respect which at times can be highly embarrassing. But as soon as you will gather momentum on your efforts to start a business, you will start to get more productive and eventually experience the rewards of your hard work. The aspect of self success was perhaps never ever looked with the required value by your previous employer as what you can experience in your own business, apart from the financial benefits that you can enjoy. So what are you waiting for? Did you ever think of this option as your resolution for this year? As they say “Better late than Never”!




The difference between Identity Theft and Identity Fraud


Many people may conversely use the terms identity fraud and identity theft to describe these two crimes, which seems as similar to them but arguably there are a few telling differences between them. The lack of financial literacy is one of the major reasons for people to have a precise understanding of a lot of financial aspects and the accompanying lacunae. This also was one of the major causes for the consumers to have acquired a large number of debts which went on to become one of the most raging issues during the recession. All this have also led a number of consumers to opt for low interest debt consolidation to resolve their debts. But in order to keep these crimes at bay one need to know the difference that exist between the two.

Identity theft occurs, when a crook gets an access to your personal details such as the social security number, your credit card account details, driving license or any other information which is private and exclusive. With the help of all these information, the crook can easily open new accounts in your name without a speck of your knowledge and by the time you may actually realize about this malice, a lot of damage may have already been done in respect of your money and credit. In legal terms however, these occurrences are referred to as “true name identity theft “. On the other hand, an identity fraud is used to describe a crime in which a crook ends up conjuring a fake persona along with a list of the personal information which is truly imaginary. A crook can however commit a “true account identity theft” by creating a fake account in your name as well, but the people who are at the receiving end for this reason are usually the merchants and not you, on whose name the account has been created. Thus you have come to know that there are marked differences between these two crimes but if we look at the bigger picture we all are indirect victims of both the crimes which can topple our financial lives in the form of an ugly additive to the already existing financial troubles.

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Some exciting careers in financial planning


Careers in financial planning are of genuine worth and highly rewarding, but it involves a lot of hard work and commitment, and at the same time remaining adhered to the principles of the subject which can bring about the desired success in the true sense of the term. Financial planning includes planning and building strategies of finance for business and individuals, in order to brace up their financial stability. The global financial crisis have propelled the need for financial experts on a global scale, because during that time a number of flourishing companies went bankrupt when they could no longer balance their profit and expenses and the individuals were already afflicted with overspending, thankfully there was an array of debt relief programs which could bring them out of the ditch of debts. But let us have a quick glance at some of the career options:

§      Financial Planners: As the name suggests, these people have their expertise in the area of designing the investment portfolio of their clients and they are actually responsible for making all the investment decisions of the clients on the basis of their preferences.

§      Financial Analysts: The analysts are those people who are responsible for all the financial forecasts, and also predict about the upcoming economic trends on the basis of the previous performances, and their predictions are what a company may make use of to achieve their financial goals. They usually take the help of various financial tools before arriving on a conclusion.

§       Financial Advisor: One who with the help of their knowledge and experience provide several observations on different aspects of personal and corporate finance so they can provide an array of information starting from debt management to various investment decisions.
These are some of the lucrative options as far as a career in financial planning is concerned, but along with all the other skills and acumen that has been discussed above, the one thing that is required by these professionals is to have a high level of integrity to emerge as a true financial professional. 




Tuesday, January 4, 2011

The excuses that Americans make about money

Money does not grow on its own, rather we have to work hard to make it a multitudinous component, for money is an integral part of our lives. But Americans are not known to follow a strict regimen when it comes to saving; instead they have earned a name for being the greatest money wasters, a fact which the recent financial meltdown has correctly furnished with a host of consumers who have opted for debt settlement programs owing to their huge debts and complicated finances. Basically nothing can justify this apathetic attitude which the people of America have, as far as money is concerned, but let us read about few of those excuses that the Americans frequently make about money in each single day of their lives:

•The first excuse is their ardent wish to generate more passive income particularly now that the economy is looking weak, and although it is a good idea but not untill it  is implemented, for as long as they would be thinking about the passive income options,  they can earn the same through an active income for which simply brushing off the skills will suffice.

•The US consumers think that they will try harder till they succeed on their motto of saving  money but despite all the vows that they take each day, they will never reduce their spending habits.

•The commonest of the reasons and explanations that the Americans have to put about money matter is that they have realized how bad their financial condition is and they  have accordingly decided to act on the basis of a monthly budget, and though they have   been repeating this since decades, now it is actually very hard for them to live within   a budgeted expense and it’s too much of limitation and pain so debts are there for them      either ways.

•When it is the question of investment, a little less than 5% of the people can actually put   their investment strategies into practice.

•The most intriguing excuse is that thinking of money or finances actually increases the greed and so it is better to keep away from all financial issues and this is the reason for which we Americans kept on imagining that we have not actually fallen back on our payment schedules which was not true, and as a result of which the debt issues became unimaginable.

However all said and done, the best way to deal with money is to avoid thinking more about it and to make the best use of it by way of financial management tactics.

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Think Twice Before Gifting Your 18 Year Old with a Credit Card

Owning a credit card by an 18 year old brings in galore of feelings of freedom, power and affordability, but often the accompanied senses of responsibilities, sensible spending and financial maturity is underestimated and ignored, which results into the existence of several credit card debt relief options and credit counseling services. Thus it is but common for the maximum number of parents to worry about their 18 year old children and their growing wants and demands that undoubtedly include the possession of a personal credit card. The same thought perhaps have moved the lawmakers to make it much harder for young adults of age 18-20 to obtain their own credit cards, according to the Credit Card Act of 2009. Under this act, anyone falling under the age group 18-21 has to meet few extra requirements before being eligible to hold a line of credit. They either have to give evidence of their high monthly and regular income in order to pay off the bills, or must have someone over the age of 21 with sufficient income and credit who will co-sign the clauses and terms with the card holder.

This is where the decision and duty of the parents come into play. The new age teenagers and young adults have a heightened level of awareness and information about all aspects and sources of consumerism, and have gathered knowledge of how to harness and exploit the same for gaining material luxuries and finding hedonist pleasures. What can be a greater and easier way than possessing a credit card in this respect! Thus the parents have to take a strict call on deciding whether it’s the right time to consider gifting a credit card to their otherwise grown up children or do they still need more lesson and wisdom of handling this responsibility. Unless you are blessed with an extraordinarily hard working, sincere and ambitious kid who would not rake his income for credit card, you have the power to acquiesce or deny their request. The fact is that, if your child’s income fails to satisfy the requirements of regular credit card payments, and does not meet the standard that creditors deem as satisfactory for handling the expense, then probably he/she should not have any business owning a credit card, and you too as a parent should understand the situation without being rushed in with parental emotions which can harm your child in the long run. On other hand, credit card should not be denied to a child who has taken care of his/her financial responsibilities and is not dependent on parents’ money; someone who has the credibility to pay off the loans regularly and can take charge of his/her own wants and needs. 

So the parent can exercise their sense of judgment by denying and restricting their undeserving children from owning a credit card if they lacks maturity and financial stability to handle their money wisely.

Monday, December 20, 2010

What to pay first: high interest or high balance credit card?

A very common question that comes up all the time when a person wants to start getting their credit card debt under control is whether to pay the high interest credit card first or to get rid of the high balance credit card first! This is a situation which does not fall under the domain of help provided by the debt relief companies by services like credit card debt consolidation or credit counseling etc. At one end if you are anxious about having high interest credit cards that costs you every month and compounds the monthly amount you owe, if you are not paying off the entire balance. For some the interest rate may go up to even 30% on the amount borrowed which basically means agreeing to pay one third more for everything you bought on the card or more depending on how long you owe. While on the other hand, you have a credit card, with such an overwhelming balance that no matter what are you paying, the balance does not seem to ever go down. Thus even if you have a low interest rate you may be paying a lot of interest because of your high balance. 

So deciding about which one to choose to pay over the other can be the trickiest question of the moment especially for those who are not particularly great in handling their personal finances. The card holder tends to feel whether he will lose out on picking the right option first! As every dollar counts and is to be used most effectively, however, sadly enough these thoughts of saving penny never occurs at the times of our frivolous spending sprees! Anyways, this is the situation when a consumer often feels most frustrated and puzzled about their personal finances. The answer actually does not exist in this particular condition as the decision varies to either choose the credit card with highest interest rate or to choose the card with the highest balance depends upon the financial urgency and situation of the card holder. For example for someone who is neck deep in credit card debt, it is most important to take an immediate action than choosing between the two options which actually have a similar consequences at either cases.

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

What Happens If A Debtor Has To Deal With More Than One Collection Agency For The Same Debt?

Getting trapped in the dirty vicious cycle of debt and its equally painful consequences has become the part and parcel of every American’s financial reality. In many cases even the most efficient debt relief companies fail to provide a perfect debt solution to the debtor to whom none of the options like debt settlement, debt consolidation or credit counseling prove helpful. In such conditions, when all the major debt repayment plans decline, the debtors have to solely deal with the creditors or the collection agencies at his own risk applying his individual skills and knowledge in negotiating with the creditors and debt collectors. The process of debt collection is always associated with fears, harassments and financial insecurities. However, one has to be aware of few facts and information regarding original creditors, collection agencies and junk debt buyers who are also known as the secondary debt collectors.

As a matter of fact, when your original creditors realize it too expensive and time consuming to extract debt from you due to your financial deterioration, they think it rather profitable to sell your debt to a collection agency at a comparatively lower cost. Now this time the debtor faces challenges of confronting a debt collection agency and its extraction methods. Thus if you are contacted by more than one collection agency for the same debt, it implies that the original creditor has given up on you and have hired a secondary or even a tertiary collection agency. In many cases when even the first collection agency sells off your debt to a new or a second agency, it indicates that the second collection agency has paid even lesser than the price with which the first collection agency has bought your debts. Thus it is time for the debtor to use some brain and contemplate easier ways to settle his debts and reduce the payments in case the debts have travelled down from the original creditor and the first collection agency to the second or third one, in which case the debtor may find himself at the receiving end than the debt collectors.